It'd been a hectic week for Nanao. For one, it was the week before the quarterly division review, and those were always awful. All the paperwork had to be perfect, the troops on a functioning schedule, and the facilities in pristine conditions for when the 1st division assessor came to look over the 8th on the following Monday. Then she'd also been moving a few things here and there into Shunsui's home every evening, although the majority of items were going to be moved this weekend. Also due to this, she'd been fending off questions and gossip right and left, many of them theorizing she was knocked up and that's why she was moving in.
"Nanao-chan! It's Friday!" her Taicho sang, bouncing into the office around noon. She'd left him in bed bright and early that morning just like every other morning. Unless she was willing to deny him sex for a while if he didn't wake up at the correct hour, there was just no getting him into the office on time. Besides the fact that that tactic drove her almost as mad as it did him, not only due to the lack of sex but also to the amount of whining and cajoling he'd attempt, it was almost easier having him out of the office in the mornings so she could actually get some work done.
"Yes it is, Taicho, now I have some forms laid out on your desk I need you to take a look at," she said glancing up at him.
"Oh come on, can't they wait till Monday?" he pouted.
"No, sir, they can't," she answered going back to her own paperwork.
"If I do them, can we leave at five o'clock tonight?" he asked hopefully.
"The review is on Monday, sir," she said sighing. "You know I never get out of here on time the week before."
"Please, Nanao-chan! They are having a kabuki performance in the 1st district tonight. I thought we could go and then get some dinner before we head home," he pleaded. He'd been taking great pleasure all week in saying let's go home at the end of each day. She almost wished she'd said yes to him sooner, considering how little it cost her and how happy it made him.
"I can't tonight," she sighed. "I have to finish the paperwork, assess the training schedule, and do one last sweep of the facilities."
"Oh come on, Nanao-chan," he wheedled. "I promise you won't get fired if there is a light bulb out somewhere in the building." She just gave him a dark look and bent back over her work. "Please," he whispered, suddenly right next to her ear and standing behind her. He moved his hand up to touch her neck and she snapped him away with her fan.
"I've told you once, I've told you a million times, not while we're at work," she scolded, refocusing on her forms as he backed off.
"I wasn't going to do anything," he whined, holding his hand like it was going to shatter into a million pieces. "Now I need a kiss to make it better."
"Shunsui-san," she said sharply, and she saw some of the playfulness go out of his face. He was well aware that she hated using his given name in the office and that if she was saying it he was actually starting to get in trouble. "All you are doing is delaying me from getting this done, and thus keeping me here longer tonight."
"Yare, yare, Nanao-chan," he said with a sigh. "I guess it's paperwork time." He sat down and started shuffling through the paperwork on his desk before picking up a pen and starting on it.
"Thank you," she said quietly, just to let him know he was already forgiven. He grinned over at her and there was peace in the office for a good twenty minutes.
"Uh-oh," he said briefly.
"What?" Nanao asked raising her head. "Don't tell me something happened to the paperwork."
"Paperwork is fine," he said standing up. "I've gotta go."
She narrowed her eyes at him and stood up too as he started heading for the door. Nanao latched on to his arm and looked at him critically. "Why are you bolting?"
"First rule of the office, Nanao-chan," he said with a mischievous grin, "No touching." Then he picked up her hand and removed it from his arm, quickly heading towards the door again.
She was so shocked that for a minute she didn't move, and then she put together all the signs. Him getting anxious, running, and actually passing up a chance to physically invade her space. Nanao scanned the surrounding area. "Absolutely not!" she yelled, following his quick pace past the secretaries who all looked up to stare.
"Don't know what you're talking about," he commented, not stopping or turning back to face her.
"I already dealt with your mother last time! You are not leaving me here alone this time," she stated firmly.
"What? She'll probably be in a good mood anyway given the news," he said shooting a grin over his shoulder. All the secretaries immediately started whispering, and Nanao groaned mentally as she could just feel the pregnancy rumors rising.
"Sir, if I have to, I will kido bind you to your desk," she threatened. "And although you may eventually be able to break it, you and I both know it won't happen before she gets here."
"You know, Jyuu always used to help me hide," he whined.
"Ukitake Taicho didn't have to stay in her company much longer than saying he didn't know where you were," Nanao defended.
"Mean," he pouted shifting indecisively on his feet and glancing again towards the exit.
"Get back in that office," Nanao said, pointing a finger back to the open office door.
"You're going to miss me when she's berated me into a crying ball in the corner," he said.
"How would that be any different then when you run out of sake?" she asked.
"You see what I put up with?" he asked the secretaries conspiratorially. "You all are my witnesses that I'm the abused one in this relationship." All the girls started giggling, and work resumed as Nanao marched him back into the office.
His mother arrived five minutes later, obviously having not used shunpo and both Taicho and fukutaicho waited rigidly as the door came open. "Shunsui," the woman said frostily, looking hard at her son, which was a bit unusual. "Nanao-san," she said somewhat more pleasantly, which scared Nanao out of her wits.
"You remember, Hayashi Kiyoko?" she asked to Shunsui, as she gestured to a beautiful petite woman who came in nervously behind her.
"Can't say that I do," Shunsui replied unconcerned.
His mother's harsh look intensified at that comment, and the girl behind her blushed violently. "Ise-san, isn't it your lunch break?" his mother asked softly.
Nanao wasn't altogether sure what to do in this situation. As much as she was happy to be given an out from Shunsui's family matters, something about the whole thing unsettled her greatly. His mother had brought women to meet him in the past, but not since they had begun dating, and Nanao wondered if this was her way of telling her to either get pregnant or get out of her son's life.
"Nanao-chan already had lunch," Shunsui said, which they both knew was a lie, but Nanao silently thanked him all the same, even if he'd only done it in order to not be alone with his mother.
"Shunsui, even you couldn't be this stupid," his mother said sharply.
"Mom, why are you here?" he asked exasperated.
"I suppose I should reintroduce you," he mother said coldly. "Kyouraku Shunsui, this is Hayashi Kiyoko from the far western territory. She stayed with our family for a few months years ago before you went to the Academy."
"Ah, I do remember," Shunsui said easily. "You were the girl that threw up all over Seichii after you ate too many sweets at that one festival." The girl looked even more embarrassed and tried to shuffle further behind his mother.
"And?" his mother prompted.
"And, what?" he asked.
"And you saw her at the meeting of the territory heads two months ago when you and your brother went to represent the Kyouraku family," his mother supplied.
Nanao remembered that particular trip. Shunsui had whined about it for weeks leading up to it. He'd been roped into it when his father had broken an ankle falling from his horse, and his mother had told Shunsui that either he and his brother went, or she and his father would move in with him. He'd been gone for an extended weekend and had come back demanding to be spoiled and fawned over as he said he had a rare case of Nanao deprivation. He'd been so persistent she'd had to call in sick one day that week. Her boss hadn't minded.
"Were you there too?" Shunsui asked blithely. "That's right you're from a noble family in the Apulia province, right?
"Yes, Shunsui-san," the girl said shyly. Her big sky blue eyes shifted between him and Nanao nervously, and Nanao wondered again why the girl was there.
"Shunsui, playing dumb will only get you so far. This is a mistake that isn't going to simply be brushed under the rug like so many others you've made," his mother put in darkly. "Kami help me, if your father and brother weren't away on business you'd already have been dragged home by your ears."
"What are you talking about?" Shunsui asked, and the playfulness was lost from his tone.
"Is this really the way you want Nanao-san to find out?" his mother demanded. "It would have been one thing a year or two ago. Then I'd be well and pleased, probably throwing you a party, but even I don't think this is right."
Nanao felt a sick feeling rise up in her stomach and was no longer sure she wanted to be present for this conversation. The petite blonde girl kept glancing over at her apprehensively and it was doing nothing to calm her nerves.
"Find out what?" Shunsui asked, looking honestly bewildered.
"Kiyoko-san is two months pregnant," his mother said simply. Nanao felt her stomach twist.
"Congratulations?" Shunsui half asked in confusion.
"You think just lying about this will make it go away?" his mother yelled.
"I don't understand what you are freaking out about," Shunsui stated calmly.
"She thinks the baby is yours," Nanao said, having figured the worst conclusion was probably the right one.
"What?" Shunsui asked in a yell that matched his mother's. "Why would you think that?"
"Because the girl claims that it has to be yours," his mother stated firmly.
"Well, then she's lying," Shunsui said. He swiftly turned to Nanao. "I don't know what they are talking about. Nanao, I'm not this kid's father. I don't even remember seeing her that weekend. You have to believe me."
"Shunsui," his mother tried to interrupt.
"If you say it wasn't you, then it wasn't you," Nanao said, trying to stay calm herself and ignore the two other people in the room. A look of relief passed over his features, and he turned back to the other women.
"Look, Hayashi-san, I don't know what exactly you're trying to pull, but it won't work," Shunsui said stonily. "You're going to have to find some other rich noble to pin this on."
At that the girl burst into tears, and regardless of what was happening it made Nanao want to hug her. She didn't seem like a girl to lie about this kind of thing. The girl looked more scared and miserable than anything else.
"My mother said this would happen," the girl sobbed. "I just didn't know what to do after they kicked me out and disowned me. Oh, kami, what am I going to do?"
"It'll be fine, dear," his mother soothed, though she didn't move to give the girl any physical comfort. "Is the baby Shunsui's or not? And it will be more trouble if you lie now."
"I swear it is, I don't know what to do," the girl got out between gasps.
"We'll go to the 4th," Nanao put in logically, trying to hold her own doubts at bay. "We'll check the paternity and that will settle that."
"Yes, let's do that," Shunsui said instantly, and his apparent belief that the test would prove him correct steadied her own inner turmoil.
They had to wait a bit for the crying woman to compose herself, but soon enough they were all headed out. Nanao hated doing it during office hours, but the Kyouraku family was a strong believer in instant gratification, and besides Nanao wanted the answer too. Walking past the secretaries watchful eyes and eavesdropping ears was difficult though, and Nanao nearly jumped when Shunsui reached for her hand. In any other situation, she'd have batted him away, but right now she let him do it. As the girl only had low level reiatsu, shunpo was out of the question, and the walk to the 4th was long and awkwardly silent. Shunsui kept glancing over at her, and Nanao just avoided his looks. She honestly didn't know how to react, and right now it was the best she could do to keep her imagination from running away from her. He held on to her hand tighter as if he was afraid she would flee.
They walked into the 4th like a funeral procession, and Shunsui's mother immediately demanded the lower ranked members go and find their Taicho. The woman was nothing if not confident in her own power.
After a few short minutes Unohana met them looking unperturbed. "Kyouraku-sama," she greeted politely. "Is there something I can help you with?"
"We need a paternity test on the girl," she said, pointing a finger at Kiyoko.
Nanao saw some of the squad members around them look on with interest, and she wanted nothing more than to sink into the floor and disappear. With this added to what the secretaries had overheard it was going to be all over the Seireitei in less than an hour.
"This way, please," Unohana said calmly. They all followed her into one of the exam rooms. "How far along are you dear?"
"About two months," the girl answered, fidgeting under everyone's gaze. Nanao wondered how old she was and then remembered that she had stayed with the Kyouraku's before Shunsui had gone to academy. She must be nearer to her Taicho's age than her own, but the woman sure didn't hold herself like it.
"The baby should be developing reiatsu around now if it is going to have any. Of course it will feel different than mature reiatsu and still be relatively faint, but this early on in the pregnancy that's the only test we can do. If there's no reiatsu, you'll have to wait a few months at the least, and even then I would suggest against it. All the paternity blood tests that can be done in utero are very risky for the baby. If there is no reiatsu it'd be best to wait until the child is born," Retsu explained for everyone's benefit.
"Just do it, please," Shunsui put in.
Unohana didn't say anything, but placed a gentle hand on the woman's abdomen and held it there. Nanao felt the delicate powers of kido rise and play around the Taicho's hand and then fall away again. Healing kido had always fascinated her despite her slightly greater talent for fighting kido. It was so precise, and was often fragile to the point of absurdity. Most people with even the lowest reiatsu levels could blow something up with kido if they really tried, but very few could perform even the most basic of healing spells. Tearing things apart was always so much easier than putting them back together. Healing kido at its best was more of an art form. The power lapped up once more along the Taicho's fingertips and died out again.
Unohana stood there for a moment longer, and Nanao couldn't stop her impatience. "Well?"
"Are you already done?" his mother asked, having obviously missed the delicate bloom of power.
"At this very early stage, it does seem to have all the marks of a Kyouraku family reiatsu signature," Unohana said quietly, but firmly.
"That can't be," Shunsui said shaking his head. "Do it again."
"She already did it twice," Nanao said, slipping her hand free of his. "She did it again to be sure."
"It's still wrong," he argued. "You said it was early, how can you be one hundred percent sure?"
"I can't be," Unohana admitted kindly. "The test is only about 60% accurate at this stage. As the reiatsu strengthens, I can be more confident, but frankly it bears all the marks of the Kyouraku family, and I have been exposed to your reiatsu on more than one occasion. I don't believe I am mistaking the signs."
"Except that you have to be," Shunsui said, starting to pace. "I didn't sleep with her. Run the test again or run a different test."
Nanao suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. Well, that and like she was going to throw up. Everything had been so perfect, and now it was so completely imperfect she didn't even know how to feel. She backed away from the scene involuntarily and felt the doorframe dig into her shoulder. Shunsui and his mother's voices rose higher, and the blonde woman started to cry again. Nanao abruptly knew she couldn't be there any longer. She felt like she was going to shatter if she remained.
She slipped out the door, and the 4th squad members lingering and listening in the hallway instantly got busy as they saw her exit. She took quick steady steps towards the door and tried to flip her brain back on. Currently she was operating on pure instinct, and she knew soon enough she was going to have to make a plan, think about what had happened, and sort out her life, but right now she just couldn't.
Nanao shoved the doors open hard and immediately ran into something solid. The person gave an oomph, and she muttered an apology as she tried to skirt around them. A hand came up and latched on to her arm, and she turned back miserably thinking it was Shunsui having caught up with her. She wasn't sure whether she should stay silent, scream, or throw up.
"Nanao-san? What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost," Jyuushiro said lightly, though he kept a strong supporting hand on her arm.
"Ukitake Taicho," she said in a strained voice. "How are you?"
"I'm fine, Nanao-san, what is going on?" he asked frowning.
"Nothing, everything is fine," she said trying to pull her arm away. All she wanted to do was get somewhere quiet and solitary and sort things out.
"That's very obviously not true," he said seriously. "I'm not letting go. Tell me what's going on."
"Shunsui's going to be a daddy," she blurted out.
His eyes widened and then a smile cracked his face. "Well, that's great!"
"I'm not pregnant," she stated calmly, though she felt everything inside her crumble at having admitted it out loud. It was all over. All of it. Every fear she'd ever had about being in a relationship with the man had just come true. And why that woman? The almost perfect physical opposite of herself. What had she done to lose him? She hadn't noticed anything different. What the hell was going on?
"Nanao? What?" Jyuushiro asked, obviously confused and trying to follow what she was saying. "How?"
"The normal way, I'd assume," she said bitterly, pulling her arm from his now limp grasp and hugging herself. "He met a pretty girl, screwed her, and now here we all are."
"There must be a mistake," Jyuushiro said firmly.
"Please, tell that to Unohana Taicho who just confirmed it," she said. "I believe that's what Kyouraku is still trying to do."
"Retsu-san said it was?" Jyuushiro asked quietly. They both stopped talking as they became aware of Shunsui's reiatsu moving quickly towards the 4th's doors.
"Looks like he noticed I left," Nanao said with a hysterical little sobbing hiccup that she couldn't control.
"Do you want to talk to him?" Jyuushiro asked quickly.
"I really don't have a choice," she said with a pained smile and burning eyes. "It's not like I can out run him."
"Do you want to talk to him now or not?" Jyuushiro asked again.
Shunsui was almost at the 4th's doors, and he must not have been using shunpo having felt Nanao paused in one location. "No," she said wretchedly. "I don't even want to see him right now."
As quick as the words had left her mouth Jyuushiro scooped her up and started flash stepping away. "Then you shouldn't have to," he said quietly as they moved.
Nanao wrapped her arms around his neck to help hold herself up, and then burst into the tears she'd been fighting since Unohana had said the baby was his.
A/N: … Please don't hurt me. At least I updated fast right? As always please review, even though I'm a little frightened of them this time.